The present invention relates generally to reels for supporting wound flexible media, and in particular, to reels having a core and at least one attachable flange.
Reels for supporting wound flexible media are employed to both store and facilitate the dispensing of wound media such as rope, wire, chain, and strings of parts. The essential elements of a reel include its core, around which the flexible media is wound, and its flanges, which prevent the wound flexible media from migrating axially off of the core.
Well-designed reels must combine a high strength to weight ratio with low manufacturing cost. One reel design that has gained popularity for certain applications includes a reel in which the core is constructed of a pressed paperboard material and the flanges are constructed of a composite or plastic material. The use of paper and plastic components, in general, provides a high strength to weight ratio and facilitates the use of relatively straightforward manufacturing techniques. Another lightweight reel design consists of a pressed paperboard core and corrugated paper flanges. While such all-paper reels provide significant economy and light weight, all-paper reels are not suitable for certain medium to heavy duty applications because the paper flanges do not have the strength of plastic, wood, or steel flanges. Accordingly, for medium to heavy duty reel applications, plastic or composite flanges provide an advantageous combination of manufacturability, light weight, and strength.
Reels having composite or plastic flanges are relatively simple to manufacture. The flanges may be formed using injection molding techniques. The flanges are then attached to the core. While the manufacturing process is relatively simple, the labor involved in the reel assembly process nevertheless contributes significantly to the manufacturing cost of the reel. One source of labor cost arises from the process of securing the flanges to the reel.
Flanges have been secured to reels using a number of methods. The selection of an attachment mechanism must balance the need for a secure attachment with low manufacturing cost. The use of staples to attach a plastic flange to a paperboard hub is well-known, and is discussed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,354 to Ripplinger. The drawbacks of stapling include the labor involved with the application of the several staples that are necessary to provide a secure attachment between the flanges and the core.
Other known reel designs include nut and through-bolt assemblies that secure the flanges to the core. These arrangements also require a significant amount of labor in the assembly of the reel, and further incur the material costs of the steel nuts and bolts.
What is needed, therefore, is a method of and arrangement for attaching a flange to a core in a reel assembly that requires less labor than the prior art arrangements, while still providing a secure attachment.
The present invention fulfills the above needs, as well as others, by providing a flange that has features that deformingly engage a pliable end of the core to secure the core to the flange. More specifically, the flange includes an inward extending ridge and an outward extending ridge that deformingly engage the pliable end of the core. By deformingly engaging the pliable end using inward and outward extending ridges, the pliable end of the core is deformed in opposing directions, thereby securing the pliable end (and the core) to the flange. The resulting reel may thus be formed by advancing the core such that the pliable end advances between the inward and outward extending ridges. As a result, other securing mechanisms, such as bolts or staples need not be used.
An exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a reel for supporting wound flexible media that comprises a core, a first flange and a second flange. The core has a first pliable end and a second end, the first pliable end defining a first cross-sectional shape. The first flange has an outer section and an inner section. The outer section includes an inner rim, the inner rim including a radially inward extending ridge defining at least a portion of a periphery corresponding substantially to the first cross-sectional shape and configured to deformingly engage the first pliable end. The inner section includes an outer rim, the outer rim including a radially outward extending ridge defining at least a portion of a periphery corresponding substantially to the first cross-sectional shape and configured to deformingly engage the first pliable end. The second flange is coupled to the second end.
An exemplary method according to the present invention includes a method of manufacturing a reel for supporting wound flexible media, the reel including a core having a first pliable end, the first pliable end defining a first cross-sectional shape. The method includes a step of disposing at least a portion of a first flange on a support, the first flange having an outer section and an inner section, the outer section including an inner rim, the inner rim including a radially inward extending ridge having a periphery corresponding substantially to the first cross-sectional shape, and the inner section including an outer rim, the outer rim including a radially outward extending ridge having a periphery corresponding substantially to the first cross-sectional shape. The method further includes the step of advancing the core past the radially outward extending ridge and the radially inward extending ridge such that at least one of the radially outward extending ridge and the radially inward extending ridge deformingly engage the first pliable end. Finally, the method includes the step of securing a second flange to the core.
Accordingly, by employing a flange having inward and outward extending ridges that deformingly engage a pliable end of a core, the method and apparatus of the present invention forms a secure attachment between the flange and the core without separate fasteners such as bolts or staples. Even if supplemental fasteners are used, the reel of the present invention provides a much more secure attachment through the deforming engagement of the ridges and pliable end. In one embodiment, the inner and outer extending ridges are wedge-shaped such that the ridges are tapered from the inside out in the axial direction. The wedge-shaped ridges facilitate movement of the pliable end of the core into a position between the ridges, yet resist movement of the pliable end of the core back out of that position.
The above discussed features and advantages, as well as others, will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reference to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.